FREEPORT/LUCAYA, GRAND BAHAMA ISLAND, April
1, 2008 – Underwater Explorers Society (UNEXSO), the premiere dive
destination and dolphin experience facility located in Lucaya, Grand
Bahama Island, and The Portage Quarry of Bowling Green, Ohio is pleased
to announce the first offshore event for the LEGENDS OF DIVING. Held
annually in Bowling Green since 2006, Jeff Rice, Managing Director of
the Portage Quarry has attracted notable American diving legends such as
Zale Parry, Dr. Sam Miller and Sam LeCocq.
The event in Ohio continues to grow in size and has attracted an
international following on the web and at the Legends of Diving event
held the first weekend of August each year. According to Rice, “The
Legends event has become a popular spot for divers to gather during the
summer but we are growing in size and our members are asking if the
event could be held in a warm weather destination during the
winter/spring months.” A search was underway for a tropical destination.
The International Underwater Explorers Society has formed an alliance
with the Portage Quarry to build on the success of the Ohio event. The
first INTERNATIONAL LEGENDS OF DIVING (ILD) will be held at UNEXSO on
Grand Bahama Island April 2-6, 2009. Keith Cooper, Director of Sales &
Marketing had invited Rice down to tour the dive facilities and the
adjacent Pelican Bay Hotel - the official hotel for ILD - and numerous
on shore amenities. Rice’s decision to choose Grand Bahama Island and
UNEXSO was easy.
Linda Osborne, General Manager for UNEXSO adds, “The ILD will bring
worldwide attention to a number of unsung heroes who dedicated their
lives to scuba diving. We are excited to work with Jeff and be the host
facility for this historic event on Grand Bahama Island.”
Joining the historic event will be UNEXSO Legends including – Ben Rose,
who discovered Ben’s Cavern located in the Lucayan National Park, John
Englander, former owner of UNEXSO, and Dr. John Clement who was in
charge of the hyperbaric chamber and one of the original founders of
UNEXSO. On hand will be Nick Rolle, Joel Pratt, Presley Knowles and
Ollie Ferguson local Bahamians who assisted in the development of the
cavern and shark training programs will share their stories about the
history of diving on Grand Bahama Island. Cooper added – “UNEXSO is
pleased to host The 2009 International Legends of Diving event and allow
us to thank the men and women who have made invaluable contributions and
risked their lives to improve the sport of diving.”
Bryan Pennington owner of Vintage Double Hose.com has been invited to
join the event for a week of diving with the International Legends. The
International Legends of Diving event will host the biggest and best
vintage equipment trip yet to date for the world famous group at UNEXSO.
This is the first event of its kind held at the resort, and will no
doubt be a hit with the world wide diving community. These divers will
be hand-picked by Bryan to represent the very best in historically
accurate vintage equipment configurations and diving techniques. Not
only will this group enjoy the finest diving available around the island
they will also have an opportunity to serve as ambassadors for the
vintage equipment diving community.
Situated on the Island of Grand Bahama Island, UNEXSO features
state-of-the-art scuba facilities, dive with the sharks, dolphin
experience and eco-education program, photography processing center and
retail store. An ideal Bahamas dive operation and training center,
located just 85 miles from the Florida coast, UNEXSO offers a host of
scuba options and dive certification programs. Located nearby are
restaurants, shops, hotels and resorts including Port Lucaya
Marketplace, Port Lucaya Resort, Pelican Bay Resort, and Our Lucaya
Westin and Sheraton Golf Resort & Spa.
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UNEXSO a premier dive destination was founded in 1965 as the first
dedicated scuba training facility in the world. UNEXSO’s management team
has worked for a number of world-class resort and dive operations in the
Bahamas, Caribbean, Hawaii, Europe, Middle East, Australia, and Asia and
throughout the continental United States. UNEXSO is one of the most
respected and ecology friendly dive operators in the Caribbean.
Inernational Underwater Explorers Society
UNEXSO In The Bahamas
PO Box F-42433
Royal Palm Way
Freeport, Grand Bahama Island
The Bahamas
Phone 242-373-1244
Fax 242-373-8956
For more information on UNEXSO
1-800-992-DIVE (3483)
ABOUT PORTAGE QUARRY: Located just one mile
south of Bowling Green in Northwest Ohio, the Portage Quarry Recreation
Club is a complete recreation facility that caters to the Scuba diver
enthusiast. The Scuba diver will experience some of the best
recreational diving in Ohio with clear water visibility, wreck diving,
and plenty of fish. The Scuba dive shop includes tank rentals, nitrox
fills, equipment, and PADI instruction. There are three professional
beach volleyball courts along with recreational swimming from a sand
beach. In the summer the Portage Quarry Recreation Club is home to two
music traditions, a music BlowOut the first weekend of July and the
annual . Also on the schedule is a Divers Alert Network (DAN)
Barbeque and the Advanced Aquatics Steak Roast. Trademarks are the
rights of the perspective companies.
